Undertale: The Corruption
by deltawulfe
Summary: Orion once thought that he was a good friend, that he could protect his friends and family, but after Chara breaks him, and forces him to follow their plans, he's not so sure anymore. Is this all truly Chara's fault, or is it his for ever listening in the first place? (Genocide Route) [Gender neutral Frisk/Chara]
1. Everything Was Fine

_**Author's Note:**_ Hello, everybody! This is my third story (or, well, my third attempt at a story…My first one and its 'reboot' didn't entirely go to plan, and were never finished.).

I can tell you now, updates are _definitely_ going to come very slowly. I don't know how slowly, but I'd expect one chapter around every few months or so, give or take a few weeks, maybe. I am a horribly slow writer, mainly because I get distracted unbelievably easily, and will inevitably end up procrastinating very often.

If that is a problem for some of you, then I am so, so sorry. Setting writing and update schedules, while good ideas for a lot of people, only seem to increase the stress for me, to the point where I won't get anything done. So, I'm going to take this nice and slow, and work on it when I get some inspiration.

Anyways, enough rambling, on with the story! I hope you enjoy!

* * *

 _Everything is gone now. There's nothing left. Everyone else is dead, besides maybe Chara. I imagine they're pointlessly drifting around this… this nothingness._

… _What have I done?_

 _Why did I go along with them? Why did I help them murder every single one of my friends and family? Why…?_

Orion Crosswell, a powerful human wizard, is now drifting through the emptiness, torturing himself over his previous actions.

Part of him wants to believe that this wasn't his fault, that it was all Chara's fault, that they manipulated him. But he knows that's not true. Chara may have started the killing, they may have ordered him, but the blood and dust throughout the Underground are on _his_ hands.

This was all _his_ fault.

* * *

 _ **Four Days Earlier…**_

* * *

Orion awoke to the quiet beeping of his alarm. He sat up, gave himself a moment to completely wake up before taking a deep breath and standing. He walked over to his alarm at the opposite end of the room and shut it off.

He got dressed and walked out into the hallway. He could hear people talking downstairs.

Toriel was laughing at Sans' typical puns, and telling her own as well, while Papyrus was yelling at both of them. He could even hear Frisk giggling at the whole spectacle.

He briefly smiled to himself and started going downstairs, hoping to get some breakfast before everyone inevitably ate it all.

Frisk was the first one to notice when Orion started walking over, and they rushed over to greet him.

"Good mornin', Frisk," he said as he ruffled their hair. "You enjoyin' the show?"

They nod happily. "Mom made bacon and pancakes."

"Sounds delicious. C'mon, let's go join everyone else."

The rest of the day was pretty typical; Frisk and Orion played video games with each other in the living room, Toriel sat in her big, fluffy chair and read books, Sans went to bed very early, and Undyne even came over with Alphys for a while. She tried to start a cooking lesson with Papyrus, but Toriel quickly put a stop to that.

When it was nearing Frisk's bedtime, Undyne and Alphys had already gone home, and Papyrus had gone upstairs to his room, but was probably still awake. Toriel put away her books and went to bed shortly after.

Orion and Frisk were finishing one of their cooperative games, both chatting away about what to do, when Orion suddenly froze. Frisk was too focused on the game to realize until they heard him drop the controller. They turned to face him, and he was just sitting there, emotionless and completely still. His face occasionally twitched.

"…O-Orion? You okay…?" When he didn't respond, they slowly reached out and tapped his arm. He shook, and his face turned to a grimace, visibly in immense pain. Frisk looked on in horror.

"What happe-" They started to speak, but Orion turned towards them with such a serious look, that they were at a loss for words.

"Something's wrong." Immediately, all of the lights in the house shattered and the television shut off, leaving them in near pitch black darkness. Orion quickly clamped his hand over their mouth, silencing them. There was some quiet thumping noises coming from what sounded like Papyrus' room, causing both of them to watch the upstairs hallway like hawks.

Soon after, there was a single thump from behind Toriel's door.

"…My child?" They could barely hear her from down there, but they continued to listen.

"…My child, what are you doing up? Did you have a nightmare?" There was a pause. A few seconds later, she continued, her voice fearful now. "W-what are you doing? No, put that down, my child! What are you doing!? Stop it, plea-"

Silence filled the house. Frisk pulled Orion's hand away and tried to get up, to rush over there to help, but Orion forcefully grabbed them and pulled them back into the couch.

"Stay here." He said.

There was nothing they could do. They knew Orion would force them to stay there if they didn't listen. They slowly nodded.

"Good."

Orion turned around, facing the stairs. His right hand began to glow, becoming surrounded by blue magic. After a moment, the magic flowed from his hand, and took the shape of a longsword. He glanced back at Frisk before rushing up the stairs, sword at the ready.

He quickly reached Toriel's room and tried to open the door, but it was locked.

"Toriel! Toriel, open up!" He slammed his fist on the door. No response. "Dammit!"

He took a step back, and kicked the door open, almost ripping it off of its hinges in the process.

"Toriel!"

He quickly noticed that he wasn't the first one to get here. Sans was standing off to the side, pupils wide, staring at the bed.

"Sans! What the hell happened in…here…"

That's when he saw it. The large pile of dust across the bed, and a child holding a knife.

He recognized them.

It was Chara, the demon child from Frisk's and Sans' nightmares, grinning sadistically and clearly enjoying every moment of this. They let out a bone-chilling laugh.

"…Oh, god…" Orion stumbled back, dropping his sword and bracing himself against the doorway. He wobbled out of the room and into the hallway, facing away from the door and leaning against the handrail.

He glanced toward Frisk. They looked more afraid then he ever remembered seeing them, and the horror spread across his face didn't help, as upon seeing him, they cowered even further into the couch, and began to quietly sob.

He knew had to do something.

Unconsciously, he tightened his grip on the handrail, causing it to creak under his hands. He pushed himself away from it, and began to walk back into the room, determined to get revenge.

He didn't get very far…

There was a sudden, blinding burst of red energy from the room, pushing him back into the handrail before something large and blue came flying out of the room, slamming into him. He felt the rail shatter behind him, and it cut into his sides as he was flung past it.

He was launched all the way across the house and smashing straight through a window on the first floor, crashing head-first into the ground outside. The large, blue object landed beside him.

It sounded like someone was calling his name.

He remained there for what seemed like several minutes. He opened his eyes, but everything was too blurry and wobbly, and his vision swirled. His vision slowly started getting clearer.

"Or…n…Orion! ORION! Wake up, please!" His vision finally focused, and he saw Frisk leaning over him. They were crying again.

"…F-Frisk…?"

They looked surprised. They opened their mouth to say something, but were interrupted by Orion coughing violently. His ribs felt broken, he could feel glass shards in his back, his head was throbbing with pain, and he was sure he could taste blood in his mouth.

He gritted his teeth, and took a slow, deep breath before carefully rolling over and trying to push himself up. He managed to sit up, but his legs felt too weak to stand. He felt something dripping down his forehead. He wiped it away, only to see his fingers covered in blood.

"Dammit…"

Orion started coughing again, and each one felt like his lungs were tearing themselves apart. He turned towards Frisk.

"…Frisk, are you-" He stopped, suddenly at a loss for words as shock spread across his face.

Frisk was silently sitting there, their hand covering their mouth as tears streamed down their face. They were staring at a blue jacket lying flat on the ground, covered in dust. It was Sans' jacket. Orion realized that it must've been Sans that was launched into him.

"…Sans…" He slammed his fist against the dirt. "…You dumbass…"

Chara stepped out of the broken window and started walking towards Orion, laughing at him.

Orion looks up at them, furious.

"You… You _bitch_!"

"Language…" They waggle their finger at him, frowning at him condescendingly. They walk up to him, anger suddenly flaring up inside them, and they smash Orion in the face with their knee, knocking him backwards. He was still too dizzy to properly defend himself.

"Chara! Stop this, please!" Frisk calls out, desperate.

"Oh, shut up, you idiot." Chara steps over to Frisk and throws them down to the ground.

"P-please, Chara, y-you don't have to do this…" Frisk says as Chara straddles them, tucking their knife into their waistband.

"I SAID SHUT UP!" Chara punches them in the face, then begins to wrap their hands around Frisk's neck.

"Now…We're gonna take this…" They tighten their grip, causing Frisk to gasp, and pointlessly grab at Chara's arms and thrash around. "…Nice…and…slow…"

"...Ch-chara…p-please…" Frisk manages to squeak out.

"Sshhhh… Don't talk. You don't want to waste your breath, do you, Frisky?" Chara giggles playfully at Frisk's gasps and chokes.

Tighter…

And tighter…

Frisk's face starts to turn blue as their life is being choked out of them. Everything begins to go dark, and their eyes start to roll back into their head.

"GET THE HELL AWAY FROM THEM!"

On the brink of unconsciousness, Frisk is barely able to see a large mass slam into Chara, throwing them off of Frisk. Immediately, they gasp deeply, and their vision clears in time for them to see Orion grab Chara by the neck and fling them into the wall.

He quickly follows up by slamming his fist into their face, hard enough to easily break their nose. He gets up in their face and roars at them, filled with unimaginable rage.

He grabs them by the face, smashes their head against the wall again, and throws them across the yard. He stomps over to them, and the fury in his eyes even visibly frightens Chara.

"HOW DARE YOU HURT FRISK!? I'M GONNA TEAR YOU TO PIECES, YOU GODDAMN _BRAT_!" His magic quickly flares up, surrounding him. While his magic was once a vibrant and beautiful blue, it's now a deep, dark red. It seeps out of him, like poisonous gas. Frisk can feel the anger and hatred in the air, and it terrifies them.

He doesn't even bother summoning any weapons. He'd much rather rip them apart with his bare hands.

Frisk wants to stop him, they want to tell him not to hurt them, that maybe they can stop this without violence, but all that comes out is a slight whimper. They've never seen him like this. He's usually calm and collected, even in stressful situations, but never this.

Chara stands up, and starts backing away, their grin wiped from their bloody face.

Orion just laughs at them.

"I see why you enjoy this, demon. Hurting the people you _hate_ and seeing the pain and torment on their faces is quite the thrill. I wonder how you're liking the other side of this." He stares at their face for a moment.

"It seems you aren't enjoying this." He fakes being hurt. "How disappointing. What's the matter? Can't take what you dish out?"

Chara trips on their own feet, falling backwards. Orion stomps up to them. He grabs their neck again and pins them to the ground, letting go of their neck and placing his knee on their chest. He can feel their ribcage creak under his weight, and Chara grimaces in pain.

"Oh, I am going to _enjoy_ killing you."

Orion summons a blade and holds it against their neck, drawing a small amount of blood.

"Any last words?"

Chara suddenly burst into laughter, startling Orion.

"Wh-what…What the _hell_ is so funny!?" Orion stared at them in shock. They kept laughing for a moment. Eventually, they were just giggling to themself.

"I didn't think you were so sadistic at times, just like I am." They giggled again. "But now that I know, I think you're _just_ what I was looking for…"

"…What…What are you talking about?"

"Why should I tell you? I'm not gonna ruin the surprise. Besides, you'll know soon enough." They pause, then start to frown a bit. "Hmm…Though, you aren't very observant, are you?"

"What?" Orion faltered.

"You see-"

Orion gasped. He looked down, and saw Chara's knife stabbed into his stomach. There was blood dripping down the knife and onto Chara. Almost immediately, his magic completely dissipated, including his blade.

"I still had my knife."

They roughly twisted the knife, releasing a blood-curdling scream from Orion. As they pulled the knife out, blood was pouring out of the wound, and Orion clamped his hands over it in a poor attempt to keep his blood from spilling everywhere.

"ORION!" Frisk yelled.

Chara shoved Orion off of them and he landed on his back. He stayed there, keeping his hands over the wound as he writhed in pain. He wheezed and coughed. He was bad at healing magic, but he tried anyway. It didn't help much.

 _Work faster, come on! Dammit!_

Eventually, he gave up, letting his arms fall to his side.

"…Fr…Frisk-" He coughed again. "…I…I'm sorry…I f-failed you…"

He tried to sit up, but didn't have the strength. "Just…c-close your eyes…and reset…please…"

They nodded, tears running down their face. They closed their eyes and focused.

"I'm just…gonna take a nap…Wake me up when nobody's dead anymore…"

As Orion was about to pass out, he felt an explosion of determination burst out from Frisk's soul.

He faintly heard Chara laughing.

The whole world began to vibrate, and slowly, darkness began to cover everything like a thick, gaseous blanket. Suddenly, the ground seemed to fade away, leaving him floating through the darkness.

His wounds seemed to heal, but his flesh was just rewinding back to before he was injured at all. It was a very strange sensation. He'd never been seriously injured during a reset before.

He took a deep breath, but was surprised when no air entered his lungs, but instead he inhaled some of the gaseous darkness. He quickly became dizzy, as he wasn't breathing actual air.

He felt like he was drowning. No matter how much he breathed, there was no oxygen. He started panicking and began to hyperventilate.

 _Why is this taking so long!? What the hell is going on!?_

The pain was so intense. He could feel himself slowly start to slip out of consciousness. It was getting hard to keep his eyes open.

He tried to call out, hoping that maybe Frisk was somewhere here too, and that they could help him, but all that came out was a quiet wheeze.

 _F-Frisk…Help me…Please…I don't want to die…_

Orion lets out another strangled gasp, and finally passes out.

* * *

 _ **Author's Note:**_ Feel free to ask questions about anything you may be confused about. I'll be sure to put my answers in the author's notes at the top of each chapter.


	2. Please Don't Hurt Them

_**Author's Note:**_ Hey guys! I'm not entirely sure how I got this done so fast.

Curiousjay1: Thank you so much! I really appreciate that. I'm so glad somebody's already enjoying this so much. Your review actually inspired me to get started on this right away, and now it's already done! :D

Though, don't get too used to that speed, it's probably not going to happen very often, haha.

* * *

Frisk's consciousness was inside their soul, where they've created a small 'room' which contains nothing but a large button that currently says "RESETTING…"

Chara had somehow managed to get inside their soul during the Reset, and they and Frisk were standing at opposite ends of the 'room'.

"How did you get here!?" Frisk yelled, glaring at them.

"Aw, are you mad at me? How adorable." Chara giggled. "You shouldn't be worried about _how_ I got here, you should be worried about what I'm going to do now that I'm here."

"…Wh-what _are_ you going to do…?" Frisk asked, meekly.

"Oh, I dunno…" Chara takes a few steps towards Frisk, looking around innocently. Every step they take leaves a black spot on the floor that very slowly spreads.

"Hmm…Looks like you've got a nice set-up here…" Chara's grin comes back, and this time, black ooze starts dripping from their face.

" **Mind if I take it?** " The black ooze pools around their feet, spreading across the floor, corrupting whatever it touches.

"Wait, what are you doing?" Frisk says, panicked. They start to feel a pain in their chest. "N-no, stop it! Stop it, please!"

" **Stop? Now, why would I do that? I'm having so much fun.** " Chara laughs and the rate of corruption rapidly increases. They look up at the Reset button. " **Though, I must thank you for actually Resetting.** **It made this** _ **so**_ **much easier.** "

Frisk clutches their chest, gasping. Their legs wobble, and they collapse to their knees.

"I-it hurts…Please…" They grit their teeth.

Frisk thinks about their friends, how they want to save them, and how they _must_ defeat Chara. They feel determination well up inside them, and the parts of the room that aren't corrupted yet glow a brilliant red, and the corruption begins to recede.

" **Oh, it's not going to be that easy, Frisk. But go ahead, make it difficult for me. I'll just make this a hell of a lot more painful for you.** "

The ooze seems to become even darker, and shadow-like tendrils appear from it, thrashing around. It starts to overpower the determination, and continues corrupting Frisk's soul. The ooze surrounds Frisk, and dozens of tendrils pop out and wrap around them, pinning them in place.

Frisk screams out in pain. Each tendril drips ooze onto them, and it feels like they're being drenched in acid. Their determination starts to fade, and the corruption speeds up further.

" **There's nothing you can do now. Soon,** **your** **soul** _ **will**_ **be mine. And then…** " They pause for a moment, and start giggling. Their giggling turned to laughter, and they kept laughing for several seconds. When they finally calmed down, they wiped a tear from their eye, still giggling.

They sauntered over to Frisk and crouched down, looking them in the eyes. Their eyes turned completely black, with small, glowing red pupils, and their smile made their face look like it would split.

" **And then, you'll get to watch as I kill every single poor, helpless monster in the Underground…With** _ **your**_ **hands.** "

Frisk was speechless, only staring at them, wide-eyed and slack-jawed.

Chara started laughing again. Frisk was silent for the longest time. Finally, they spoke up, still in shock.

"…Why…?" They asked, almost too quiet to hear.

Chara stopped laughing, and stared at them.

" **Why? Isn't it obvious? It's because I hate them. All of them.** "

Frisk looked up at them with a sad expression.

"Even your family?"

" **YES! Even them! They never understood me!** "

"Maybe not, but they still _cared for you_!" Frisk was louder this time.

Chara faltered.

" **Shut up.** "

"Mom loved you! Dad loved you!"

" **Shut up!** "

Frisk was determined.

"Asrie-"

" **SHUT THE HELL UP!** " Chara swiftly punched them in the face. " **YOU DON'T KNOW ANYTHING!** "

They punched them again, and again, and again until their face was reduced to a bloody, bruised mess. Frisk's head hung low, and their hair fell down, covering their face. An occasional drop of blood dripped from their mouth.

The corruption was complete.

* * *

Orion felt a faint pain in his side. Suddenly, the darkness started to fade. He could very faintly hear some voice. He was slowly regaining consciousness.

"…-ey…" Another, slightly more sharp pain. "…wake…"

The voices became clearer. Unfortunately, so did the pain. It felt like he was being repeatedly smacked in the side by something heavy.

"Hey!" Another smack. "Wake the hell up!"

Suddenly, Orion's eyes shot open, and he bolted upright, gasping for air and clutching at his chest. He ignored the voice beside him, and focused on breathing actual air as much as possible. Slowly, his hyperventilating turned to slow, deep breaths. He looked up, suddenly realizing where he was.

He was back in the Underground. Back at the beginning of the Ruins. He was sitting on top of the flower patch. Relief flooded through him.

"Oh, thank god. We're back…It worked…" He looked over at where the voice was coming from.

"Frisk, are you-" He froze, shock quickly silencing him. 'Frisk' was staring at him with a familiar grin and bright red eyes. He backed away slowly.

"F…Frisk…? A-are you…okay?"

"Oh, Frisk isn't available right now. But they're alive. For now, at least." They giggled.

"Ch…Chara?"

"Correct! Wow, how did you _ever_ make such a guess? I'm sooo impressed." They said, incredibly sarcastically.

"Oh, fuck…No, no no nonononono." Orion grabbed the sides of his head, staring wide-eyed at the ground. "I-I thought we Reset…I thought…I…This…This can't be happening…" He paused for a second. "H-how…HOW THE FUCK ARE YOU STILL HERE!?"

"Language…" They warned, glaring. "It was quite simple. You see, Frisk and I have always been somewhat connected, ever since they first fell into the Underground. I simply exploited that, and followed them through the Reset. I really shouldn't explain much more, you probably wouldn't understand much anyway."

Orion quickly stood up, glaring back at them. "Let them go."

"Excuse me?"

"Get the hell out of them!" He yelled.

"No."

"No? NO!? I WASN'T ASKING!" He grabbed them by the neck, lifting them off the ground. "GET OUT OF THEM, OR I _WILL_ KILL YOU!"

"What, you think I'm just gonna give up? After all this? Ha! Yeah, right. And besides, you can't kill me anyways!"

"AND WHY'S THAT!?" Orion yells as he summons a sword and points the tip at their forehead, threateningly. They just giggle in response.

"Because…" Their eyes get dark. "If you attack me, you hurt Frisk. I'm sure you wouldn't want to do that, now would you?"

Orion held them there for a moment.

 _N-no, I've…I've still got to try…Maybe…Maybe they're lying. But…No! I can't take the risk…I…I can't hurt Frisk…Never…_

His anger slowly faded, only to be replaced with a defeated look. The sword vanishes, and he gently sets them back down. He stumbles back into the stone wall, and turns toward it, leaning against it.

With a yell, he suddenly smashes his fist against against the wall. Then again, and again, and again, each one progressively weaker than the last. He slowly slid down the wall onto his knees, staring down at his hand. His knuckles were bruised and bleeding, and possibly broken.

He slowly summoned a small bandage, and carefully wrapped his hand. He turned around and sat against the wall with his head tilted back against it.

"What do you want?" He said, quietly.

"Well, originally, my plans were to force Frisk to Reset, take over their body, and kill everybody, just so that they can watch all of their friends and family die. The first two steps are finished, but now there's been a change of plans." They look at him very seriously. "Now, Orion, you are going to do exactly what I tell you to. If you don't, then I will slowly kill Frisk, and they'll die a slow, agonizing death. Got it?"

"They'll just Reset again. They always do."

"Oh, I know. And I'll just follow them again, and kill them over and over, each more agonizing than the last."

Orion didn't have a response. He just glared at them.

"Now, what you are going to do is brutally murder every innocent creature you come across in the Underground, instead of me. That way, I can torture two different people at the same time!"

"Never. I will _not_ kill anyone!"

Chara sighed, "I figured that would be your response. Oh, well." They pulled out a knife.

"I guess I'll just have to torture Frisk instead!" They raised the knife up to their neck, drawing a small amount of blood. Orion quickly stood up, fearful.

"Wait, WAIT!"

Chara stopped. "Oh?"

"Okay…Okay…I…" He gritted his teeth. "I'll do it, I'll listen…Just…Please… _Please don't hurt them_."

He was desperate.

Chara scrutinized him for a while. Not moving, just staring.

They scoffed. After a moment, they sighed and put away the knife. Orion let out a breath he didn't realize he was holding.

"You must do everything I say, even if it involves killing your friends and family. You _do_ realize that, right? You're going to do that, just to protect this one person?"

"…As much as it pains me, yes. I will."

"You're insane." They sighed again. "But…So am I."

They giggled. "I think we'll make a great team…"

" _Partner_."

* * *

 _ **Author's Note:**_ Sorry for the shorter chapter, I couldn't find a better place to end it. Hope you enjoyed still!

Future chapters are probably going to be ranging from this length (1,500-ish words) to maybe around the length of the first chapter (2,800-ish words).


	3. Be Good, Alright?

_**Author's Note:**_ So… It's been almost exactly two years since I started this. To be honest, I kinda forgot that this existed. I recently remembered how fun it was to write the first two chapters, and decided to make at least _some_ effort to continue this, if even just a bit. Since it's been so long, this chapter's going to be _significantly_ longer than the others. Hopefully it turns out good.

If anybody even ends up reading this, please let me know if there's anything I could change. It may have been two years, but I haven't done much writing, and I'm still not that great at it.

* * *

"Well? You coming or not?" Chara stood at the end of the room, tapping their foot impatiently.

 _What have I gotten myself into…?_

Orion just stood where he was, staring at the floor with a blank expression.

"Answer my question." They walked up to him, staring at him expectantly. He had no reaction, not even a glance.

 _What have I just agreed to…? To kill every monster in exchange for Frisk's life?_

"Hey! What is wrong with you?"

 _No. I have to. Frisk is too important. Sans might not forgive me. Flowey probably won't either. But they're the only two that will remember._

Chara slapped him, hard enough that he stumbled slightly. "Snap out of it!"

He quickly turned, glaring at them for a moment before his defeated look returned.

"Right. S-sorry. I was…lost in my thoughts…" he said, slowly.

They scoffed, and turned around, walking back towards the door. Orion hesitantly followed.

As they entered the next room, a familiar yellow flower popped up from a patch of grass in the center. It turned towards them, smiling. Neither of them were surprised.

"Howdy! I'm Flowey! Flowey the flower!" Flowey bobbed back and forth, as if dancing to nothing.

Orion briefly looked back at Chara, and they gave him a look that said 'Go on'.

"Hmmm…You're new to the Underground, aren'tcha?"

Orion took a deep breath.

"Golly, you must be so confu-"

"I'm sorry." Orion interrupted.

"Eh? What for? You…haven't done anything?"

"I have to do this." Orion ignored the flower. He created a sword once again. Flowey shrunk slightly.

"I…I hope you can forgive me."

Orion lunged forward, but Flowey managed to burrow into the ground before his sword impaled him. Flowey popped out of the wall, glaring.

"W-what the hell!? What is _wrong_ with you!?" he yelled.

Orion silently pulled his sword out of the ground and aggressively turned towards Flowey and, with a grunt, he threw his sword at him. Flowey burrowed away again, and this time, didn't return.

"You didn't kill him," Chara said. They sounded disappointed.

Not that Orion cared. He just sighed, allowing his sword to fade. He walked up to them. He spoke quietly, since he knew that Toriel would be here any second.

"Well, I'm sorry that I wasn't quick enough to murder Flowey." He said, sarcastically. "But I am trying. And that's the most that you're gonna get." He continued. "If you're gonna make me kill almost everybody I've ever known, then you'd be stupid to think I'd be good at it."

Chara scoffed. "You seemed pretty ready to kill me in the last timeline."

"That's because _you_ actually deserve it." He glared.

"I've died before. I'm not afraid of dying again."

"What I wanted to do to you would've been a _hell_ of a lot worse than buttercup poisoning." He retorted.

Chara froze.

"Oh, I'm sorry, did I bring back some bad memories?" Orion chuckled. "Good."

Large footsteps echoed from the hallway ahead. Toriel was getting near.

It was Orion's turn to freeze now. He realized that he's got to _kill_ Toriel. He shuddered at the thought.

"…I…I don't have to…kill her _now…_ r-right?"

Chara thought for a moment.

"Hmm…No, not just yet."

Orion shakily sighed, bringing a hand to his face. He was still terrified, but at least he didn't have to do it yet.

Toriel entered the room, gasping upon seeing the two.

"Oh my! Are you two alright? I was coming to check if anyone had fallen down, but I certainly didn't expect to see two humans!" She rushed over, making sure neither of them were hurt.

He tried to make as convincing of a smile as he could as Toriel checked the child. "Don't worry, we're alright."

Toriel noticed Orion's bandaged hand and gasped again. She held it, looking it over.

"What happened to your hand?" She asked.

"O-oh, I, uh, punched a wall…"

She looked at him strangely for a moment. "Well, here, I will heal it for you."

Her hands became enveloped in bright green magic, filling Orion's hand with a wonderful, warm, and tingly feeling.

"Thank you." Orion said.

After she finished checking them both, Toriel stood back up.

"I'm sorry, I forgot to introduce myself. I am Toriel, caretaker of the Ruins," she said, flashing them both a friendly smile.

"Name's Orion Crosswell. I'm a wizard. Good to meet you." He said as he removed the bandages from his now healed hand.

… _Again._

Toriel seemed surprised by the wizard part, but didn't comment on it.

Orion gestured to Chara. "And this is Ch- uh, Frisk."

Chara smiled and waved silently, doing their best to imitate Frisk.

Orion hated it, _despised_ it even.

He managed to keep a straight face, but his hands started to shake.

Toriel, being particularly perceptive, immediately noticed it. She looked at him, concerned.

"Are you alright, Orion? Your hands are shaking."

"Wha- uh…Y-yeah, I'm…fine. Don't worry about it." He chuckled nervously.

 _Dammit. I don't think I could've been less convincing if I tried._

Toriel stared at him incredulously, obviously not believing a single bit of it.

"I'm just…a bit stressed out, that's all."

 _Now that's an understatement._

Orion hated lying to her, he knew she'd somehow end up prying it out of him, but he _cannot_ tell her about what's happening. Or rather, what's _about_ to happen.

Toriel seemed satisfied with that answer. For now, anyway. Her friendly smile quickly returned, and she led the two along, introducing them to puzzles and fights.

As Chara explored a room ahead, Toriel turned to Orion.

"So earlier you said that you were a wizard. Is that true?" She asked.

"Yeah." He replied, casually.

Toriel immediately perked up even more.

"Really? It has been so long since I've met a wizard! What type of magic can you use?" She asked, excitedly.

"Oh, uh, I can create objects and tools. But only if I have enough material stored up beforehand." He demonstrates this by picking up a small rock, absorbing it, and creating a small metal cube.

"The materials don't have to be related to each other, as long as I have enough, I can make anything, theoretically."

"That sounds really useful!" She says.

"Yeah, it can be."

Eventually, a small Froggit hopped along, initiating a fight with Orion and Chara. Chara ended up not forcing Orion to kill that one, since Toriel was nearby. They didn't want their plans screwed up already.

After a while, they came across a long, dark hallway. Orion remembered this. He'd always thought it was hilarious how Toriel was hiding behind a lonely pillar at the end of the room. She never did a very good job of it either, always being obviously visible since the pillar was a bit too narrow.

As usual, Toriel tasked them with crossing the empty hallway, acting overly serious about the whole thing before rushing off to the other end. Orion and Chara silently walked across.

Occasionally, Orion would glance over at Chara. Some small part of him had hoped that he'd see Frisk with their eyes, with their beaming smile, happily skipping along beside him.

He knew he wouldn't, but he was saddened nonetheless when he saw Chara's emotionless face and red eyes.

 _Poor Frisk…What did they do to you?_

He watched them as they walked, looking for any sign of Frisk. Eventually, Chara noticed. They frowned at him.

"What are you staring at?" they spat.

Orion flinched. "N-nothing."

Chara just rolled their eyes. "Whatever."

After a moment, they reached the end of the hallway, and Toriel came out from behind the pillar.

"Do not worry, I did not leave you. I was merely behind this pillar the whole time."

Orion snickered. He tried hard not to laugh at Toriel, since he knew she meant well, but he found it funny nonetheless.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to interrupt. That was just funny for some reason," he said, smiling.

"Oh, it's alright! You said you were stressed earlier, so I am glad you are feeling happy now."

Orion's smile faltered slightly, but he kept it up so that Toriel wouldn't worry.

"There was a reason for this exercise…To test your independence. I must attend to some business, and you two must stay alone for a while. Please remain here. It's dangerous to explore by yourself."

She paused for a moment, thinking. "I have an idea. I will give you a cell phone. If you have a need for anything, just call."

She handed Orion the phone, and took a step back, facing both of them.

"Be good, alright?" she said, giving them a short wave before walking out of the room.

As soon as she was out of sight, Orion's strained smile vanished, and he stared down at the phone in his hand before slowly putting in his pocket.

"Happy? Sure…" He let out a chuckle that held such sadness behind it.

He hadn't even killed anyone yet, but it was obvious that he was already breaking. Chara almost pitied him. Almost. They'd have spared him from _some_ of the killing, but they realized just how much easier this would make getting him to kill everyone. They giggled to themself.

"How…How do you do this? How is this enjoyable for you? Torturing people? Killing them? What could you gain from this?" Orion said with a hint of desperation.

They stared at him for a minute before sighing.

"It's complicated," they said.

"C-…complicated? That's it?" He stared, dumbfounded. They didn't answer. "You…You don't even know…do you?"

They stared back at him, surprised. They clenched their fists and turned away, shutting their eyes.

But they didn't deny it.

"O-oh god…" Orion felt sick to his stomach. "I…I need to sit down…"

He stumbled back into the wall and slowly slid down, holding his head in his hands.

"…You don't even know _why_ you're doing this…and yet, you're still doing it?"

They said nothing.

"What the hell is _wrong_ with you?" He glared at them. "Don't you realize how fucked up this is!?"

Their shoulders shook slightly, but they stayed silent.

"Answer me, dammit!" Orion stood up and took a few steps toward them.

" **SHUT UP!** " Chara lunged at him, barely giving him time to react, and knocked him onto his back.

They climbed on top of him and started to punch him repeatedly in the head, but they only managed to land a few punches before Orion managed to tightly grab their wrists.

" **LET GO OF ME!** " They screamed, thrashing around. Orion didn't let go, and eventually, after yelling some threats and profanity, they calmed down somewhat, still glaring, but not moving.

"You done?" he spat. When they did nothing in response, he took it as a yes. He let go of their wrists, and Chara jerked them away.

"Then get the fuck off of me."

Silently, Chara complied, rolling off to the side and sitting against the wall. Orion stood up, brushing himself off. He felt a small drip of blood coming from his nose, and he tried to wipe it away with his hand, but only managed to smear it. He sighed and sat back down a few feet from Chara.

"Frisk and Toriel don't like it when I do this, but…fuck it." Orion created a cigarette. He placed it in his mouth and created a lighter, and lit the cigarette.

He smoked it as slowly as possible, trying to savor it.

"You _smoke_?" Chara sounded almost grossed out.

"What? You torture and murder people, but you're grossed out by someone smoking?" Orion starts laughing. "Now _that's_ funny."

After a minute, he sighs and takes his head in his hands.

"…I need a damn drink." He creates a small flask, and takes a long swig from it.

"Alcohol's gross too."

"Oh, shut the hell up. Just let me enjoy this one goddamn thing."

They both sat in silence for a couple minutes while Orion finished the cigarette. Once he did, he put it out against the stone floor and sighed.

"Y'know, Toriel's going to be worried when she sees my face," Orion said.

"Don't you know healing magic?"

"A little. It's only good enough for bruises and small cuts or scrapes though. Wait, how'd you know that?"

"I saw you trying to use it in the last timeline."

"Oh. Right. When you stabbed me. I guess it's worth a shot." Orion took a deep breath, and his hands started to glow a dim green. He gently placed them against his face and kept taking slow breaths, letting the magic do its work.

After a moment, he let his hands fall back to his sides. His face felt somewhat better, but it was still sore. He pushed himself to his feet. Sighing again, he turned back towards Chara, his face solemn.

"Let's just…get this over with."

Chara quickly stood up, following him out the door and into the next room. Almost immediately, the cell phone began to ring. They already knew who was calling. Though, it was strange how she always managed to call just as they left, no matter how long they spent in that room. Orion took it out of his pocket and answered.

"Hello? This is Toriel," she said

"What's up?" Orion tried to sound as nonchalant as possible.

"You have not left the room, have you? There are a few puzzles ahead that I have yet to explain. It would be dangerous to try to solve them by yourselves."

"Don't worry, Toriel. Even if we do leave, I'm sure we can handle ourselves," he said.

"Oh, alright. Just be careful, okay?"

"We will. See you soon."

"Be good, alright?"

"Of course." Orion hung up, and breathed a sigh of relief. He was about to say something to Chara, when he noticed a Froggit sitting off to the side, minding its own business.

Orion glanced at Chara, who simply motioned towards the unsuspecting monster. Orion slowly nodded at them, creating a sword, and approaching the Froggit.

The Froggit finally noticed him as he was already preparing to attack it. It quickly started to panic, but managed to leap out of the way of Orion's swing, just barely dodging. It was about to question him when Orion suddenly swung at it again, catching it off-guard and striking it, dealing heavy damage. It made a quiet choking noise before collapsing into a pile of dust.

Orion shuddered at the sight.

"Wh-what are you d-doing!?" said a quiet, but panicked voice beside him. He already knew who it was. He turned to see a Whimsun flying a few feet away, shocked at what it had just seen.

Orion said nothing. In one quick motion, he lunged forward and sliced through the Whimsun before it could react. It fell to the ground and turned to dust as well.

He felt sick. Ever since he'd met Frisk, he never killed anyone. Not once. But now that he had, he was disgusted with himself.

Chara started laughing.

Orion turned to glare at them. "What the hell is so funny?"

"You murdered those _poor, innocent_ monsters," they mocked.

"Shut the fuck up. I'm doing what you told, so the least you could do is just be quiet."

"Hmm…I'll think about it."

Chara giggled and started walking towards the door. Orion took a second to just breathe, and followed them.

The next room's floor was cracked and broken in the center, and the two of them jumped over it. Orion killed another Froggit before they left the room. Once they entered the next room, the cell phone rang again. Orion attempted to calm himself as best as possible and answered.

"Hello? This is Toriel."

"Hi, Toriel! What's up?"

"For no reason in particular…Which do you and Frisk prefer? Cinnamon or butterscotch?" Orion was about to say that they both like cinnamon, but Toriel stopped him. "…Wait. Do not tell me. Is it cinnamon?"

Orion froze.

 _That…That's not supposed to happen…How did she know? She's not supposed to remember anything._

"Orion? Are you still there?"

"Wha- uh, yeah, sorry. I was…lost in my thoughts for a moment. Yeah, we do prefer cinnamon. How'd you know?"

She giggled. "I had a feeling."

She paused for a worryingly long moment. "…When humans fall down here, strangely…I…I often feel like I already know them. Truthfully, when I first saw you, I felt…like I was seeing some old friends for the first time. Strange, is it not?"

"Y-yeah, that's…very strange…"

 _That's never happened before…What is going on?_

"Well, thank you for your selection."

"No problem. Goodbye for now." Orion said before hanging up. He stared at the phone, confused, but didn't put it away, knowing that Toriel would call again in a few seconds. As expected, the phone rang again.

"Hello? This is Toriel."

"Hi again."

"You two do not _dislike_ butterscotch, do you? I know what your preference is, but…Would either of you turn up your nose if you found it on your plate?" She asked.

"No, not at all. Butterscotch is great," he answered.

"Right, right, I understand. Thank you for being patient, by the way."

"Yeah, of course."

Toriel hung up, and Orion walked over to a rock in the middle of the room and pushed it onto a nearby pressure plate, which retracted some spikes ahead. As they stepped over the spikes, the phone rang once again.

"Hello? This is Toriel."

Orion chuckled. "I know. You're the only one who calls us, you don't have to tell us every time."

"Right. Sorry."

"Don't worry about it. It's not a problem," he said.

"Neither of you have any allergies, do you?"

"Not that I know of. Why do you ask?" Orion already knew why, but asked anyway just to play along.

"Huh? Uh, no reason…No reason at all." Toriel giggled and hung up.

Orion sighed and shook his head. He put the phone away, and they wandered into the next room.

The majority of the floor was cracked apart, but Orion remembered the path to take to not fall through. Chara followed carefully behind him.

In the next room, which had three different rocks, each with their own pressure plates connected to a bridge of spikes ahead, Orion moved the first two rocks onto their respective plates before crouching down next to the third.

"Excuse me?" he said.

"Well, howdy, pardner! What can I do ya for?" it replied in a stereotypical cowboy accent.

"Would you be so kind as to hold down that pressure plate so that my… _friend_ and I could pass?"

It seemed to pause for a moment. "Well, since ya asked so nicely, I suppose I could do that for ya."

The rock started to slide across the floor on its own, making a horrible grinding noise. It managed to climb onto the plate, causing it to drop an inch or so, becoming level with the floor.

"There ya go, folks. Ya'll have a nice day, now."

"Thanks. You too."

Orion and Chara move on to the next room and, surprisingly, the rock didn't move off the pressure plate at the last second, like it usually does. Once they got to the next room, Chara stopped Orion, pulling him aside.

"When I said everyone, I meant it."

Orion looked away, frowning. Slowly, he raised his hand towards the previous room. It glowed with magic, and after a moment, the sound of shattering rock echoed down the hall.

"There. You happy now?" Orion said.

"I suppose. Now, if you could just wait here for a minute, I have something I need to do."

"What? Are you leaving? 'Cause that would be great."

"Funny," Chara said, sarcastically. "No, but I do need to ask a special little someone about something."

Orion glared at them. "I swear, if you hurt Frisk any more, I'll-"

"You'll what? Attack me?" Chara interrupted. "Whether or not I hurt them depends on if they answer my question or not."

Chara leaned against the wall and closed their eyes, becoming completely still.

Orion cursed under his breath. He sighed and ran his hands through his hair. Finally taking a look around the room, he realized he was in the room with the mouse hole and the cheese stuck to the table. He always wondered if the mouse ever got that cheese after they left.

Orion looked at the mouse hole, then at the cheese. Strangely, even though the cheese was there long enough to be stuck, it wasn't moldy, or even dirty at all.

He walked over to the cheese and, creating a small knife, carefully cut it free from the table. He picked it up and gently set it down in front of the mouse hole. He stood back and watched as an adorable little mouse popped its head out, saw the cheese, and carefully wandered out to grab it and drag it back into its hole.

 _Well, at least I made someone happy this timeline._

Chara gasped suddenly, startling Orion. They stumbled, almost falling over, but they leaned back against the wall, and slowly sat down on the ground, taking deep breaths. After a moment, they shook their head slightly and looked up to see Orion's questioning stare.

"What? I'm fine," they said.

"Oh, I wasn't concerned about _you_. Just curious why you seemed so dizzy," he replied.

Chara ignored his somewhat rude comment. "Moving your consciousness around isn't exactly easy. It's pretty disorienting."

Chara stood up, dusting themself off a bit. They made a show of cracking their neck and knuckles. "Now, on to business."

Orion thought that they meant that they were ready to move on, but instead they just stood there. They began to take slow, deep breaths, focusing, and staring intensely at the space in front of them.

"Uh…What are you doing?" Orion asked.

They didn't reply. Their red pupils started to glow and, after a brief pause, determination surged through them, bursting out into the room and draining the color from everything. Their face scrunched up and they clenched their fists, straining to manipulate their determination.

Orion recognized this. It was just like when Frisk first tried to save.

"Oh, you have _got_ to be fucking kidding me! You can save!?" He yelled.

Time stuttered, freezing for a brief moment before returning to normal, with the color returning to everything again. Chara sighed, holding their head in their hands. They seemed a little dizzy.

"Yes, I can save. What, did you think Frisk was the only one with determination?" They said.

"Of course not, but only one person can do that at a time!" Orion replied.

"Exactly. And right now, that person is me. I have control over their soul, remember?"

"No need to remind me." He spat. "Let's just keep moving. I want to deal with your bullshit as little as possible."

Chara simply scoffed in response, but followed him to the next room anyway.

Ahead was the familiar depressed ghost, Napstablook, pretending to be asleep on a pile of leaves. Chara looked at Orion expectantly, but he just looked back like they were stupid.

"He's a ghost, dumbass. I can't touch him." He whispered.

Chara just rolled their eyes.

Orion walked up to Napstablook.

"Excuse me, I don't mean to bother you, but would it be too much trouble for us to pass by here?" He said politely.

"...oh..." Napstablook floats up off the ground. "…okay...I'm supposed to stop you or something…but…I'm really not feeling up to it..."

The ghost silently floats away through a nearby wall.

Orion starts moving towards the next room, but Chara stops him.

"Stop. You're forgetting something." They said.

"What?"

Chara motions toward a side room. "Spiders."

"Are you kidding me? They're just spiders."

They just stare back expectantly. Orion wants to argue further, but gives in.

"Fine." He growls. He reaches out and absorbs some stone from the wall, then raises his hand and coats it in magic.

A few seconds later, glass is heard shattering in the spiders' room, followed by flames erupting.

"A molotov? Brutal." Chara said, giggling.

"Shut the fuck up." Orion snaps.

Orion moves on to the next room, a small hallway with three froggits. He just wants to get this over with. He quickly slashes through the three of them, trying his best to ignore their screams of agony as they fall into dust.

He keeps moving, not looking back at the poor monsters. The six room puzzle ahead is easy enough, Orion knows the solution by heart. The spiral rooms go by just as quickly, and, after taking another side path and killing another froggit, he emerges in front of Toriel's house.

Chara saves once again, with the burst of determination less obvious this time.

Orion waits for a moment, knowing what happens next.

The front door opens up, with Toriel coming out, clearly in a hurry to get back to where she thought we were still waiting.

"Oh dear, that took longer than I thought it would." She said, pulling out her cell phone before finally noticing Orion and Chara. She gasps and rushes over.

"How did you get here? Are you hurt?" She checks them both over.

"No, no, we're okay. We just walked over here, we didn't run into any trouble." Orion lied.

"Not a scratch… Impressive!" She says as she finishes checking them. "But still… I should not have left you alone for so long. It was irresponsible to try to surprise you like this." A moment of silence passes before she realizes what she said.

"Err… Well, I suppose I cannot hide it any longer. Come!" She motions for the two to follow her into the house.

As the three enter the house, Toriel turns around and smiles.

"Do you smell that? Surprise! It is a butterscotch-cinnamon pie."

Orion takes a deep breath, smiling from the amazing smell.

"I thought we might celebrate your arrival. I want you to have a nice time living here. So I will hold off on snail pie for tonight." After a moment, she continues.

"Here, I have another surprise for you." She leads the two down the hallway to the right, and to the first door.

"This is it. A room of your own. I hope you two like it!" She smiles at the two, ruffling Chara's hair. She pauses and sniffs.

"Is something burning…? Um, make yourselves at home!" She says, rushing off towards the kitchen.

"So..." Chara turn to Orion, grinning. "Looks like we'll be sharing a room tonight."

Orion glares at them. "You disgust me."

Chara laughs. "I don't care, watching you kill things is fun."

They both walk into the room, only to realize Toriel only has one bed in here. She never actually needed two until Orion and Frisk first arrived. She must have not realized.

"I call the bed!" Chara says as they leap into it.

"I don't give a shit." Orion replies. He sits down on the floor across the room, as far away from Chara as possible. "You gonna sleep?"

"Of course I am, this bed's comfy. Besides, all this work I've done made me tired." They say sarcastically.

"Good. At least I won't have to listen to your bullshit for a while."

"Rude."

"Fuck you."

After a few minutes, Orion sighs and stands up, heading towards the door.

"Where do you think you're going?" Chara says.

"I'm going out for a walk. Enjoy your damn nap." He says as he leaves.

Chara scoffs, and closes their eyes, drifting off to sleep.

* * *

 _ **Author's Note:**_ And there we go. After two years, this chapter's finally done. I want to try to get the next one done _relatively_ soon, but I have no idea when that'll be. I just hope this kind of hiatus doesn't happen again.

Again, I'm not too great at this yet, so if anyone has any constructive criticism, I'm all ears.

Have a nice day!


End file.
